Glance News – 25.10.2017

Address by the Hon’ble President of India Shri Ram NathKovind at the Joint Session of Karnataka Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council on 60th anniversary of VidhanSoudha

Today is a memorable day for parliamentary democracy. I address this august Karnataka Legislature as the 14th President of the Republic of India on the occasion of the diamond jubilee of the VidhanSoudha. Personally also, it is a memorable day as I took oath as President of India in the presence of both Houses of Parliament on this very day, three months ago, that is 25th July, 2017.

Key Point in the address: The President said that we are aware of the three D’s of the legislature,that it is a place to debate, dissent and finally decide. And if we add the fourth D, decency, then the fifth D, namely democracy, becomes a reality.

Paper 2: Indian constitution – Statutory Bodies

CVC to develop Integrity Index of 25 Organizations

The Central Vigilance Commission will rank the central government organisations on anti-corruption measures being taken by them, an official release said on Wednesday.

The CVC has decided to go in for development of the integrity index-based on bench-marking of internal processes and controls within an organisation as well as the management of relationships and expectations of outside stakeholders, it said.

The main objectives for which the Integrity Index is to be established are:

Define what constitutes Integrity of Public Organizations

Identify the different factors of Integrity and their inter-linkages

Create an objective and reliable tool that can measure the performance of organizations along these above factors

Validate the findings over a period of time to improve upon the robustness of the tool that measures Integrity

Create an internal and external ecosystem that promotes working with Integrity where public organizations lead the way.

About CVC:

The CVC is a statutory body and derives its powers from the Central Vigilance Commission Act, 2003. CVC is a main agency for preventing corruption in the central government. It was established in 1964 by an executiv3e resolution of the central government. It was recommended by Santhanam committee on prevention of corruption(1962-64)

Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India hosted First Meeting of BIMSTEC Task Force on Traditional Medicine on 24-25 October, 2017 at Parvasi Bhartiya Kendra, New Delhi.

About BIMSTEC:

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is an International Organisation involving a group of countries in the South Asia and South East Asia namely, Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal.

India being a major stake holder in the field of Traditional Medicine plays an important role in influencing the policies and strategies related to the Traditional Medicine in the BIMSTEC Forum

(b) Priority Areas for technical and research collaboration among the Member States on Traditional Medicine

(c) Regional strategy on the protection of Genetic Resource associated with traditional

Medicine Knowledge and Intellectual Property Rights and develop a work plan

(d)Human Resource Development and Capacity Building among the BIMSTEC Member States

(e) New Initiative, proposals and programmes for cooperation on Traditional Medicine among the BIMSTEC Task Force on Traditional Medicine.

Paper 3: Infrastructure

Shri Gadkari says highways works worth Rs 8 lakh crore will begin before the end of 2018 under Bharatmala Pariyojana. Bharatmala will provide NH linkage to 550 districts, and be a major driver for economic growth in the country

The Minister of Road Transport & Highways, Shipping, Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Shri Nitin Gadkari has said that highways works worth Rs 8 lakh crore will begin before the end of 2018 under the Bharatmala Pariyojana.

Bharatmala isa new umbrella program for the highways sector that focuses on optimizing efficiency of road traffic movement across the country by bridging critical infrastructure gaps.

The Minister also said that Bharatmala will give the country 50 national corridors as opposed to the 6 we have at present. With this, 70 – 80 percent of freight will move along NH as against the 40 percent at present.

The programme will help to connect 550 Districts in the country through NH linkages. Currently, only around 300 Districts have NH linkages. Bharatmala will also have a positive impact on the Logistic Performance Index (LPI) of the country

GS Paper 3 – Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment.

₹2.11 lakh crore for PSU banks to boost lending

The Centre unveiled an ambitious plan to infuse ₹2.11 lakh crore capital over the next two years into public sector banks (PSBs).

Govt has taken massive step to capitalise PSBs in a frontloaded manner, to support credit growth and job creation.

Govt plans to fund through budgetary provisions of 18,139 crore and the sale of recapitalisation bonds worth 1.35 lakh crore.

The balance would be raised by the banks themselves by diluting the government’s equity share.

Cabinet also approved 5.35 lakh crore for massive road infrastructure investment under Bharat Mala Programme. These steps will boost flagging economic growth and create jobs.The effect of recapitalisation on the fiscal deficit would be determined by the type of bonds and as to who the issuing authority would be.

Twin-Balance Sheet Problem:

The balance sheets of both public sector banks (PSBs) and some corporate houses are in terrible shape and it has been seen as a major obstacle to investment and reviving growth. The problems faced by the Public Sector Banks are linked directly to that of the corporate sector.

Companies borrowed a lot of money from banks to invest in infrastructure and commodity- related businesses, such as steel, power, infrastructure etc. But now, due to slump in both these sectors, the corporate profits have hit new lows. With low profits, the corporates are not able to repay their loans and their debts are rising and in turn cut down on investments.

Glance News:

Social Host Liability :

This refers to the potential liability faced by a person who serves alcohol to adult guests in a non-commercial setting. In the case of any unlawful incident, the host who offered alcohol to the guest is held to be at least partially liable for the incident and could be punished under the law.

When an inebriated man meets with a road accident after consuming alcohol at a party, for instance, the host of the party can be punished. Social host liability may discourage people from offering alcohol to guests who may indulge in unlawful activities under its influence.

Chhath Festivel:

Chhath Puja is a festival dedicated to Surya, the Sun God, and his wife Usha. The festival is celebrated across India in Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh as well as Maharashtra as well as internationally by Indians in Nepal and Mauritius.

Also called as Surya Shasthi, the festival is performed to seek blessings of Surya to live a long and healthy life. The festival starts on the sixth day after Diwali (hence, chhath or six). It will be celebrated from October 24 this year.

The four-day festival includes rigorous rituals such as holy bathing, fasting and abstaining from drinking water, offering prayers and food to the rising and setting sun.

Environmentalist consider it as one of the most ecofriendly festival.

Global Integrity Index:

The Global Integrity Index assesses the opposite of corruption: the existence of laws,institutions, and mechanisms designed to deter, prevent, or curb corruption and their implementation and enforcement.

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Published by IASMANI

Manikandan Arumugam, an officer of batch 2016, cracked one of the toughest exam in India ,UPSC Civil Services Examination in Tamil language. Hailing form a rural background, with his sheer perseverance, he achieved this feet. He has always been an epitome of goodness. Smart-attitude and self disciplined approach is his mantra through out the journey of civil service preparation. His victory created a mania among rural aspirants especially those who hesitated to even dream about UPSC just because they dont know English.He recreated history clearing the air that regional language is no longer a hurdle in achieving or cracking UPSC. This forum will be a bedrock for all those who want to write the exam in Tamil language, to show the aspirants a path for a successful winning way.
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1 thought on “Glance News – 25.10.2017”

HI sir I Am ranjith..congratulations for ur wonder initiative for rural aspirants..best wishes..
This initiative helps lot of students who struggling for their preparations. And thank u for ur support…